Punjab News: Former Deputy CM OP Soni Arrested In Disproportionate Assets Case

Chandigarh: The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) on Sunday night arrested former deputy chief minister OP Soni on the charges of amassing assets disproportionately to his known sources of income during the period of previous Congress rule 2016 to 2022.

An official spokesperson of the VB said that a case FIR no 20 dated July 9, 2023 had been registered under sections 13 (1) (b)and 13 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act at Police Station VB, Amritsar Range against O P Soni following investigations in the inquiry, which was ordered on October 10, 2022.

₹7.96 crore unaccounted for

Divulging more details, the spokesperson said that during the check period from April 1, 2016 to March 31, 2022, the income of the former deputy CM and his family was ₹4.52 crore while the expenditure was Rs 12.48 crore which was ₹7,96,23,921 or 176.08% more than his known sources of income.

OP Soni's lavish lifestyle under scrutiny

During this period, accused OP Soni had made properties in the name of his wife Suman Soni and son Raghav Soni, the spokesperson said and added that further investigations in this case are on.

Who is OP Soni?

Soni has been a legislator five times who lost to an AAP candidate in 2022 in 2022 when the AAP came to power with a stunning landslide victory winning 92 of the total 117 seats in Punjab in March this year. He had held important positions including the portfolio of health minister and deputy chief minister during the previous Congress regime.